Invasive shrubs take over Brighton Recreation Area

A few recreational parks in Livingston County have invasive plants taking over the natural habitat.

Have no fear; with the help from volunteers and the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, they have been able to control the plant population from spreading like wild fire for the past several years.

“It’s an ongoing process because by the time we can identify the plant, or scrub, it has grown to a noticeable size and already planted its seeds,” said Laurel Malvitz-Draper, Michigan Department of Natural Resources steward, noting the next scheduled plant removal is February 22 from 1-4 p.m. at the Brighton Recreation Area.

Malvitz-Draper coordinated this volunteer program for nine parks in southeast Michigan in 2006 that experience invasive plants taking over natural habitats, two of which include Brighton and Pinckney.

“It broadened and more parks came on board,” she said.

The types of plants that typically are seen during the wintertime are shrubs, some which include Glossy Buckthorn, Autumn Olive, Honeysuckle and Multiflora Rose.

The volunteers will cut the scrub’s stump as close to the ground as they can.

They then will spray herbicide that travels down in the root to kill the plant from growing again.

“However, they continue to come back because they’ve already planted their seeds,” Malvitz-Draper said. “These types of plants come back year after year and we have to get rid of them each time.”

The only way to get rid of them is to control the plant population, which limits ecosystem disruption.

“A large problem we see with this is that they will compete with native plants essential living necessities such as soil and food,” Malvitz-Draper said. “Invasive plants have a competitive advantage because they come from other continents that most times, don’t carry over insects, fungus or diseases – all of which keep a plant in check.”

When a plant has insects and fungus to balance out the population, it keeps a plant from growing out of control.

“Invasive plants don’t have that, which is why we will come in to kill them off,” Malvitz-Draper said. “It’s important for us to do so it won’t do harm to a natural habitat.”

The Michigan Department of Natural Resources is looking for more volunteers to help cut down shrubs at the Brighton Recreation Area. Interested volunteers should contact Malvitz-Draper at malvitzl@michigan.gov.

Contact Livingston Daily reporter Abby Welsh at 517-548-7108 or at awelsh@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @abby_welshLD.